De-Friended?

I love that song by Randy Newman! "You Got a Friend In Me" ... Remember?  It was from Toy Story.   I love that movie too...

I thought about that song this past week, after Robin Williams died, everyone was saying, if you ever find yourself feeling low call someone.  The problem with that is that if you get that low you don't want to call someone because you might be bothering them.

Even if they are your friend. 

But CALL! 

Believe they will be very glad you called them.  

I also thought of that song when I discovered an old friend had de-friended me on FB.  I think they thought I didn't have enough time for them.  Unfortunately that was true, I didn't have enough time.  I'm not going to make excuses and say I should have, could have, ... etc.  It just happened and I'm sorry that person felt that de-friending me was somehow justified by my inability to hang out on FB.

Once again, I thought of that song this week when I texted my best friend as I was getting ready to drive past her house.  We live about an hour apart and I was in her neighborhood.  I needed personal facilities in friendly territory.  She was not home but told me her daughter was and invited me to stop anyway.  We have been friends our whole lives.  That is a total of 56+ years.  We don't get together much and don't text or talk enough.  We keep up on each other on FB by liking and checking out each others photos and posts.  I love her with my whole heart and know that no matter what, we willl always be friends ... in fact I would call her if I was in that place of deep despair and she would call me.  That's Friendship.

Selfless.. 

Thoughts

Monday night we learned that Robin Williams apparently committed suicide.

When I first heard of his death, I heard Mork in my head say ... "This is false information" But unfortunately ... Mork was wrong.

Robin battled depression, had substance abuse, and heart surgery.  I read many comments about his life, comedy, acting career, humanitarian acts of love and charity.  His death came as a shock to us all and I find myself waking still with him on my mind.

Williams was such a part of my life yet I didn't know him personally nor have I ever seen him, in person.   I can't imagine how his family and close friends are feeling right now.

Dennis Miller said last night on a news show, "If a person with as much going for him as Williams could feel so alone, it is a warning to everyone."  He also said, it would honor Williams's memory to reach out to another person whenever YOU feel in such desperate straits because hope is always just around the corner.

I called my brother Monday night as soon as I had heard the news.  I knew he would understand me since he has a sixth sense into my thoughts... older brothers do you know... We were thinking along the same lines as Miller even then ... if someone with so much talent, success, and love could feel so alone ... is there any hope for us?

Suicide is an act of betrayal. The person contemplating the act, finding themselves in the pit of despair, doesn't think that way.

They just want the pain to go away.  

I know .. I've been there. 

What  has stopped me?  My kids, my husband, my brother, my friends, my God, and HOPE.  (not in any order)

Miller is right ... the sun will come up tomorrow and there is always HOPE.

That is the thing about HOPE ... we can always for hope for something.  You might say ... no, I have nothing to hope for,  oh but you do ... even in your darkest moments, hope that you can get out of your bed tomorrow.  I have been there too... Hope that the doctor will get your meds correct and the therapist will help you make the breakthrough.

If someone you love, suffers from depression ... take them seriously.  Because it is seriously situation.

24 Hours

Well, I did it ... stayed off social media for 24+ hours.  

At one point, I thought, I should go check Facebook, and then said oh no, I can't ... small panic that lasted about 30 seconds.  

Really it wasn't that hard and it seemed I had more patience dealing with the little things in life.  

I think I need longer than 24 hours to really make an impact on my spiritual life. Cutting back seems like a good idea right now and so I think I'm going to stay off first thing in the morning.

This fasting thing off Social Media needs more thought and experimentation.

I can't decide if this blog is social media or not ...       

His Voice

Want to hear the voice of GOD?

                      Open a Bible ... ok so maybe you don't believe it is really God's Voice.  Then you shouldn't read this blog.   

Sure God spoke through the burning bush and dreams with Angels and I believe He still does. In fact the next time I see a bush on fire I'm going to listen very closely.  I'm not kidding or being sarcastic.  I look, listen, and wait for God and His voice everywhere.  But the only place I know I will hear it for sure is in my Bible.  

God speaks to us also through TRUSTED friends and family.  I say TRUSTED because I think one has to earn the right to tell someone what they think God is saying... you just can't walk up to someone and say, God told me to tell you ... it really doesn't have any validity.  Jesus had 12 close friends and 3 very close friends for a reason.   I also love the story of Mary coming to Jesus at the wedding ... she tells him they are out of wine and he is like .. so??? She earned her right to tell him what the Father was saying ... and he listened.  

Sin blocks the voice of God... before you open your Bible think if there is any unconfessed sin in your life.  I have been doing this everyday and what a difference it has made in my prayer and devotional life.  I'm not saying beat yourself up about it, I am just saying be in check with your thoughts and motives.  I think the worse sin is not LOVING people ...  Think of the rich young ruler that came to Jesus.  I love Mark's account after the young man says I have kept all the commandments. 

 ... Mark 10:21 Jesus looking at him, loved him and said to him.  

See Jesus didn't say ... OH NO YOU DIDN'T 

.... he loved him and said, "sell everything you have and follow me." ... Take sin out of life and follow me.  

Fasting can also open up your ears to hear God's voice.  Mark Batteson talks a lot about fasting in The Circle Maker and he doesn't just say to fast from food ... he said one summer his family fasted from TV! 

So I've going to fast from Social Media for 24 hours.  It may end up that I need more than 24 hours but I think it is a good start.  I'll let you know if I hear God's voice.  

Take a fasting challenge, think of something you can't live with out.  The reason I picked social media is because when the lights go out at my house, the first thing I think about is ... oh no, I can't get on Facebook.  Stupid I know, but I guess I discovered I can't live without it.   Maybe it is TV, your phone, a game, apps... music, whatever it is just try 24 hours and see if God speaks.  

Power

Ephesians 3:20 "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us"

Feeling powerless?  Read that above verse again...

                             The last eight words of that verse are amazing... 

Think about them for just a minute...    According to the power that works in us


Have you ever considered that there is a power in you that can do amazing things? Well, it is there and you just need to tap into it ... But how? Now that is the question.  

First ... Believe it!  ... Believe that God's power is in you and He is able to do things that you wouldn't dare to dream.  Make a decision to believe it.  Believing is a choice.  

Really it actually is easy.  

Here is an example: I believe my husband loves me ... Do you believe you have someone that loves you?  You choose to believe it.  You can do the same with God. Choose to believe God's Power is in you and you can do things that you would only dare to dream.  

What makes the believing part difficult is this ... you have to transfer that belief from you head to your heart and honestly that transfer thing is hard to do. Your heart doesn't always want to trust your head.  But make the choice to make the transfer.

Second ... Write that verse down in your journal and circle it in your Bible; Write it on a note card or a sticky note and place in a prominent place where you will see it everyday.  Memorize the verse.  When you are feeling powerless, you have it right on the tip of your tongue and you can be reminded of the power, God's power that can do exceedingly abundant things. 

I do like the Amplified Version: Now to Him Who, by (in consequences of) the (action of His) power that is at work within us, is able to (carry out His purpose and) do super-abundantly, far over and above all that we (dare)  ask or think - infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes or dreams.  

The Message interprets it this way:  God can do anything you know - far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. 

Guarantees

A question I am often asked when people come for the first time to my classes; "Can you guarantee results if I join your exercise class?" 

That is a good question and I would love to answer with a resounding YES!  But I can't, ...

I have no control on the students that come to my class when they leave.  Like what they will do with the rest of their day, what they might eat or drink.  So I can't guarantee what results they might have.  In fact now that I think about it I have a limited amount of control on students while they are in my class.  Maybe they won't exercise to their fullest potential or maybe they will talk and not really exercise.  Maybe the size of weights they are using aren't appropriate for their abilities.  

Guarantees come with appliances, electronics, ... etc. And I think they are called limited warranties.  I can't give them out for results in exercise, even limited ones. 

I really wish life came with a guarantee ... Like if I didn't like how my nose looked, I could return it for a new one.  I know I could have a nose job but there isn't a guarantee that I would even like my nose after that and returning your nose job isn't as easy as returning something to the mall.    

I used to find myself seeking a guarantee from God.  A guarantee that I was doing exactly what He wanted me to do.  I wanted to be that person that impacted people's lives.  I wanted to make people feel special.  But I find that with each passing day I'm more confused to what God wants me to do.  In fact I feel like I'm in a slump, like I'm not doing anything for HIM.   

I don't think there are any guarantees in Christian Life ... 

The only guarantee we have is this ... 

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."  Deuteronomy 31:6 

One last thing ... Happy 32nd Anniversary to my wonderful husband!  He is an inspiration! 

When?

Waiting is a nasty task, but we all have do it.  Have you ever not been able to sleep at night? You toss and turn; You get up walk around, look for something to eat, see what is on TV ... but the wait goes on for hours.   Even praying doesn't seem to make the time go faster.  Then the next day, after being up all night, it drags on too.  Waiting for the Sun to come up or go down is not fun.  

Waiting on God can feel that way.  You pray and hope for an answer but none comes.  The days tick by and even though you are waiting with an expectant hope, the waiting can still be painful.  I say painful because there are times that you think God doesn't hear you, that you are talking but no one is listening.  And there is a pain in your heart, an emptiness.   

We watched "Heaven is for Real" last night ... good, clean movie.   I believe it, the story that is ... but it was a long wait during the movie to get to the good part.  When you know the storyline of a movie and the beginning seems slow ... that is a long wait too. 

I bet you are waiting for me to make some point here ... about waiting on God and prayer.

You'll just have to wait ... Because waiting is hard.  

BUT...

When the waiting is over, you will forget you waited so long. 

The Captain of the Ship

Adventure?  Love it? Hate it?  

No matter how you look at, life it is an adventure.  Some say, learn to love it or you will 

never be happy.  

I just heard Pharrell Williams's voice.  Who doesn't hear 'happy' and think of Pharrell?  Sorry for the interruption... 

So this morning I was thinking of all these different scenarios my life could be taking over the next year, and I began to feel like I was falling apart.  I was overwhelmed with what might happen. 

Then my mind took me back to Luke 5:27, a verse I read this morning ... "Later, as Jesus left the town, he saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at his tax collector's booth.  "Follow me and be my disciple," Jesus said to him."  The commentary that went with this devotion stated that following Jesus is an adventure and it will take us out of comfort zone.  

As that devotion played in my head... I thought ....

I am really out of my comfort zone.  The last seven years really haven't been comfortable either. So why am I praying this prayer for my family that will change a lot of things in my semi-comfortable life?  

I can't even answer that right now. 

But then as I turned in to the church parking lot where I was teaching my class, I said out loud, "boy am I glad I'm not the captain of this ship!"  

It was an epiphany.  

I have chosen to be a believer in God and so my life is His ... I'm on His ship experiencing the adventure.  Where it goes, is His direction and His control.  If it appears that I fail, just hold on because appearances aren't always what they seem.  I am waiting to hit Mach 1 ... till things turn into a sea of glass and I can see where my captain is leading us.  

Hurry Up and Wait!

Life is pretty routine and my circle books are continuing to encourage me to pray through.  I'm waiting on God for something BIG.  About 35 days ago God laid an important prayer need for our family on my heart, and with the help of The Circle Maker and Draw the Circle, I have been focusing my prayers in this special direction.  I have learned very much about myself and prayer as I am now heading towards my next forty days.  

I've come to the conclusion that prayer is much like air travel... Hurry UP and WAIT!


Hurry up to the airport   
Hurry up to check your bags  
Hurry up through security  
Hurry Up to the Gate

...

SIT AND WAIT 
...

And so it is with prayer ... Hurry up pray and then Wait ... Hurry up pray and then wait ... 

I want God to be more that those expert Air Travelers... you know them, they show up to the gate right before boarding begins, calm, cool, and collected.  They know just how long each step takes from getting to the airport and to the gate.  But as it is with God, air travel, most of the time is not a guarantee even for those seasoned travelers. You can be on the plane, in your seat, cell phone off, headphones in, and the tower brings everything to a halt. Praying through my circumstances can be just that, sitting on the tarmac waiting for God to say GO!

Those seasoned travelers are the first to get impatient, they start to complain, worry, and become angry.  Their cool, calm, collected demeanor is gone!  I can easily get that way too with praying through and hard.  I want everything now and think that praying 40 days is like praying 40 years.  I hear myself saying to God ... come on already!  

I'm praying with a determination to pray as long as it takes, even it it takes longer than I ever imagined.  I know that God is not my genie in a bottle, I know that my prayer needs to be in line with God's will.  And knowing myself and understanding my relationship with God~ I don't think I would last 40 days of praying for one thing unless it was God's will.  So looking back on past prayers and answers will help determine if I'm praying  God's Will or just asking for something to make my life more comfortable.  I personally believe my stamina would give out if I wasn't praying God's will.  Let's see how the next 45 days go ... I will be blogging everyday.  Wait in prayer with me! 


If you want to read those books The Circle Maker and Draw the Circle they are written by Mark Batterson